Introduction

Pterattack is a revamped game, now sporting new graphics and slightly different game play from it's previous version. Take control of a green Pteri flying through canyon taking out enemy Pterodactyls and the rampaging Grarrls. With 4 different weapons to take up, blast your way to fun.

Controls & Instructions

Use the arrow keys to move around the screen, and the space bar to fire off your shots. You can
keep it pressed down to keep a steady fire going.

There are four total different ammunition, each of them available in 4 upgrades:

PterShot: This is your starting weapon. Fires straight forward at all levels. Increases in power AND rate of fire (three shots on screen at level 2)

FireBall: Starts off with a basic red ball that flies straight forward. On the second power level, it fires off two shots in a tight V shape. At the third power level, it fires off three red balls of flame in a V shape with one going down the middle. At the fourth and final power level, it fires off three yellow waves in a tight formation that extends sideways about two and half Pterodactyl widths. Recommended weapon!

PterPod: Quite the weird weapon, with a low rate of fire. At the basic power level it fires off three green shots, one to either side in a horizontal line, and one straight forward, only one on the screen at a time. Stay to the sides, and when the right or left one disappears you can fire again. At the second power level, you upgrade to two forward flying green dots that fly in a tight V formation, still at the rate of one on the screen at a time. On the third, your rate of fire increases as well as the speed of the shots. Still the same two shots in V formation. On the fourth power level you get a nifty red laser that fires forward for a limited range of about one third of the screen, powerful but dangerous to use.

PterBoom: At the basic level, you get to fire off one boomerang at a decent speed. On the second power, you get two boomerangs that fly out sideways a bit before traveling straight up. On the third power, you get to fire much more rapidly, still the same two boomerangs. On the fourth power, you get two giant boomerangs flying off in the same pattern as before. Recommended weapon!

There are 2 types of enemies in this game:

Red Grarrl: Worth ten points if you shoot it, it will come up from behind you stomping down villages. Somewhat dangerous to shoot without diagonal or horizontal weapons.

Pterodactyls: These come in a variety of colors, starting with brown and a slightly more resistant green. They then increase to blue, yellow and red each requiring more shots of the basic blaster to take them out. However, they are all worth only 5 points each. The brown ones only need to be short by any of the weapons at basic level to be taken out, green ones require two basic shots, blue ones require three shots of the basic weapon, and so on. Increasing the strength of your weapon makes taking them out easier. At the second level, your weapons kill both brown and green Pterodactyls with one shot for instance.

There is also a white/silver Pterodactyl that begins showing up at level 5 which swoops out from the left side. Running into it does not cost a life, but it can distract you.

Tips & Strategies

You may find yourself frustrated early on by not being able to fire your gun rapidly especially as enemies start to close in. Standard weapons only allow two shots to be on screen, so keep that in mind, your shot has to clear the entire screen, or hit an enemy, before you can fire again. Two ways to be able to fire rapidly then would be to hover near the middle of the field so that your missed shots disappear quickly or hit a target, another one would be to conserve your shots so that you fire closely at near point blank range to take them out.

The problem with both is that, and especially on later levels, sometimes a clump of enemies will stream out close together and you cannot fire off enough rounds to take them all out. So always be sure you can back out to the sides while moving back so that it buys you time to fire off more shots into that cluster of enemies.

Dealing with the Grarrls can be tricky unless you're using a weapon that strikes off to the sides, as getting in behind the Grarrl can be tricky and dangerous for a mere 10 points. However, having that huge bulky thing can cut off a much needed escape route. Lining up to the side of it, out of his biting range, you can take him out using the basic (second and third power level) PterPod, 2nd power level (and above) FireBall, or 2nd Level (and above) PterBoom. Using the PterShot or a basic FireBall, PterBoom, you'll need to crawl in behind the beastie to blast him.

I recommend using the FireBall or PterBoom weapons, as their rate of fire and dispersal is good enough to clear yourself an opening and mow down plenty of enemies. But as always, whatever suits your style of play and works well is best for you.

Playing near the top increases your rate of fire and danger just as much. Hitting enemies before they even pop into view increases the rate at which you rack up points, but becomes harder and harder as the level increases. Past Level 5, as the blue Pterodactyls appear, you'll need your weapon at it's highest level. Staying in the middle allows you to take out more enemies if you use the wider spread weapons, and you can avoid the Grarrl easily as well as the occasional large clump of enemies. On the higher levels, drift in and out of the pack taking out the right targets.

By this, I mean that you'll be focusing your fire strategically. Don't waste your time firing endlessly into a high level Pterodactyl when you can take out two lesser ones with the same shots for more points. Avoid tougher ones like the plague. Always try to target the highest level Pterodactyls which you can eliminate with a single shot. Have a power level 2 PterBoom? Then try to focus on taking out all the green Pterodactyls that you can. Pick off the brown ones if you can, but focus on maximizing the effects of each shot.

Conclusion

The game starts off simple and easy, but progresses rapidly on higher levels where you must learn to decided on which section of the screen to take up, and you have to actively think quickly as to whether you have enough power to cut through the oncoming enemies swarm or whether you have to get out of the way to avoid losing a life. Practice will make that easier, since as you keep playing at a glance you can tell whether you're in trouble or whether you're safe without as much effort.